At the announcement of store closings, the employee-es Virgin rally: a historic strike
conducted in January shows that they will not allow themselves to do. ---- Established in
France in 1988, the prestigious British brand original musical had its heyday in the 1990s
with the advent of CD and provocative shots of communication. Twenty years later, Virgin
Megastore is in complete disarray commercial fault, its successive leaders, have been able
to meet the challenges posed by the transformation of markets (dematerialisation) Or
rather, they have responded to calls action plans, more or less aborted conducted mostly
in defiance of staff. Virgin is also affected, as its main competitor, Fnac, lower
attendance shops, crisis requires.

First sold in 2001 to the Lagardere Group, Virgin has, since 2007, the property investment
fund Butler, the same who in the past has raided SNCM then liquidated SERNAM. Result?
Successive closures of stores: in 2011, are those of Bordeaux, the Louvre and Saint-Denis
that the works council (EC), led by the CGT, however, did not attempt to stop. In 2012,
are those of Metz and Toulouse at the initiative of the South, followed by the EC,
justice, May 25, 2012, suspended the two closures, forcing management to negotiate a
social plan more decent.

Counter direction

This action was also forced to reveal his project, by 2014, the closing ten stores,
involving the removal of half of the remaining jobs 1200: it was so urgent to build
employee engagement, sluggish fault will of the majority unions. It was not until December
19, when the formalization of the proposed sale of the lease of the main store, the
Champs-Elysées, which has 184 employees and es still weighs 20% of the turnover of the
company for the revolt explodes. Following a general meeting of all trade unions called
for a national strike on 29 December. Saturday in question is one hundred employee
Champs-es, joined by delegations from other stores Ile, which blocked the store all
afternoon. In the regions, the strike has also affected those in Bordeaux, Lyon and
Toulon. A new strike is then scheduled for January 9. It is in this context that the
management that no longer pays rent shops for several months and the employer's share of
social security contributions, announced on 4 January, putting in default of the sign!

A historic strike

Far from being dismantled, staff participation in the strike on January 9th is historic:
it is 400 employee-es Île-de-France who gather on the Champs-Elysées, almost all stores
province mobilized. This is the largest mobilization of employee-es of trade since Marks &
Spencer in 2001. The fight is launched: an inter-CFTC-CGC CGT-FO-South gathers, FA are
organized and team communication is taking place. The aim is twofold: to pay Butler and
find a buyer to keep the maximum number of jobs and shops. On the initiative of the South,
a national demonstration of employee-es Virgin takes place Jan. 29 in the direction of the
head of the shareholder, combining political organizations and other anti boxes
(ArcelorMittal, PSA, Sanofi, etc..) the Virgin, to whom the commercial court has left at
least until March 21, do not let liquidate without flinching!